Leonardo DiCaprio and Sean Penn sought for The Revenant

Alejandro González Iñárritu's survival revenge thriller

Biutiful director Alejandro González Iñárritu has been planning the cast for his adaptation of The Revenant , and he's aiming high.

He has met with Leonardo DiCaprio and Sean Penn to discuss roles, with DiCaprio set to play the lead.

The film, based on Michael Punke's novel, is set in the 1820s, and follows a frontiersman who's attacked by a bear on an expedition.

Expecting him to die, his companions rob him and make off, not counting on the fact that he survives and comes seeking vengeance.

As far as premises go, this one sounds incredible, and DiCaprio and Penn would have the gravity to keep it grounded (if you imagine Liam Neeson in the title role, it feels like a totally different prospect).

There's no word on how close the actors are to actually signing up, and as they're both busy men, their involvement would mean the film would have to wait until autumn '12 to shoot.